“It was nice to meet you, George,” I said with a smile as I got up from my seat and moved down the line.
He smiled and waved me off as I took a seat opposite the next guy.
I was already starting to see why speed dating might not be right for me. Having to make the same small talk over and over was already kind of exhausting, and we were barely ten minutes in.
The bell rang again and I moved down the line. I glanced to the side to see Delia happily chatting with the guy I’d just been on a date with, not seeming to have any of my reservations about talking to so many people one after the other.
I forced a smile onto my face and chatted with the vampire opposite. He seemed nice enough, but he didn’t captivate my attention the way I felt like I should. I knew I wasn’t being fair to my potential dates by not paying them as much attention as I should, but it seemed as if Anise was telling the truth and I really was hung up on Baal.
And that even though I knew that it was unlikely, I kept hoping that he was going to be the next person I sat down opposite.
“Hi,” the next guy said brightly before I’d even managed to touch my chair. “I’m so happy to meet you. Did you know that this is one of the most effective ways for leprechauns to find their forever person?” he asked.
“Erm...no, I didn’t. I don’t think I’ve ever met a leprechaun before.”
“Oh, well today’s your lucky day. I’m glad I can be your first.”
“It’s good to meet you,” I said, properly sitting down and looking around for a waiter. It was safe to say that I was almost certainly going to need another glass of wine to get through this mini-date, even if it was only five minutes long.
“I’m Derek,” he said. “Named after my father’s father’s father.”
“Wouldn’t that be your great-grandfather?”
“It would, you’re right.” He beamed. “But that’s not really something we say amongst leprechauns.”
“I didn’t know that,” I responded.
“Well of course not, if you’ve never met one of us before, then you won’t know anything about us. You’d fit right in with the family though, just look at your hair.”
I reached up and touched the red curls that bounced around my face. “Thanks?”
“You’d actually be the envy of at least three of my cousins. They have more of a copper colour to their hair than yours.”
“Oh.”
“Tracey tried to dye it once, but it went so badly, she ended up with burns everywhere...”
I tried to keep up as he told me a strange story about his family that I was reasonably sure they’d have preferred to keep to themselves, but I didn’t say anything, though I could feel myself growing weary as he continued on. At least he didn’t seem to be paying much attention to my lacklustre responses.
I finally managed to flag down one of the waiters and order myself another glass of wine, which was a relief.
The bell was a welcome end to the personal tirade that Derek had somehow managed to get himself into.
“Thanks for your time, Derek,” I said, getting to my feet as quickly as I could.
“Wait, I didn’t get your name,” he said.
“If it’s fate, we’ll cross paths again,” I said with a forced smile.
I checked the clock on the wall to see how much time we had left before the event ended, but I realised I hadn’t paid any attention to how long it was supposed to take.
It was fine. The next guy had spent all evening next to Derek the talkative leprechaun, I imagined he’d probably welcome a break from it too. So I should be bold and upfront about it rather than suffering through another date, even if it was potentially rude of me.
“I know we’ve only just met, but if there’s any chance we can sit in silence for five minutes, that would be great,” I said as I took my next seat.
A charming and familiar chuckle was the response that I got. I looked up and met a pair of dark eyes that I’d seen many times in my fantasies.
My heart raced and warmth spread through my entire body as I took in the handsome face and the well-fitting shirt he was wearing. If I’d had any doubts about his status as a god, then they were vanishing now, seeing him like this made me absolutely certain that the internet hadn’t lied to me.
“Hello, Chelsea,” Baal said in his flawless voice, leaving me speechless in a way that had absolutely nothing to do with my need for quiet.
CHAPTER 5
Baal
The beautiful red-haired witch sitting opposite me was the last person I expected to see tonight, but that did nothing to stop the blood rushing to my ears.
This was the chance I’d been waiting for. I’d hoped to suggest a date to her at the end of our photography project, but now I had an earlier chance, I wasn’t going to wait. She was at speed dating, which meant that she was definitely single, and probably open to more than just a fling. That was something I could get on board with.
“Baal, I didn’t expect you to be here,” she said a little breathlessly.
“I can’t say I expected you to show up either,” I responded. “But here we are.”
“Yes.”
“Do you come here often?” I asked.
“It’s my first time. What about you?”
“I’ve been a few times. I’ve never met anyone I liked from it.” Which did raise the question of why I kept returning, I supposed I was just a romantic at heart whether I wanted to admit it or not.
“That’s a shame.” She didn’t sound like she believed that.
“Maybe,” I responded. “But there’s always time to change that.” I smiled at her, hoping she realised that I was talking about her.
“Right.” She sighed and leaned back in her chair. “How are you dealing with your next door neighbour?” She nodded towards the leprechaun she’d just been talking to. Though that suggested a conversation, when it very much seemed as if she was being talked at.
“With more amusement than you, I think.” I grinned.
“Was it that obvious?”
“To me, I don’t think he noticed, so you’re safe.”
“Oh good.”
“So, what should we talk about?” I asked.
“You could tell me what you were going to ask me about over coffee,” she responded. “It would be a nice change from being flirted with badly.”
My heart fell but I kept a smile on my face. I didn’t need her to know that I’d had every intention of flirting with her myself. But that was fine. If she didn’t want to, then I wasn’t going to force the issue, that wasn’t fair of me.
“That’s a good idea. So I’ve been asked to do a charity photoshoot,” I said.
“And you want me to see if the shop will develop them for free?” she asked.
“What? Oh, no, that’s not necessary, I can do that in my home studio,” I said without realising what it revealed.
“You have a home photography studio?”
“I am a photographer,” I pointed out sheepishly.
“Then why come into the copy shop? There’s nothing special that we do there.”